Terminal and method of controlling the same

ABSTRACT

A mobile terminal is presented. The mobile terminal includes a touchscreen for receiving an input, an output unit for outputting a vibration while a pointer contacts and moves along an input area of the touchscreen, and a control unit for controlling a characteristic of the vibration according to at least one of an attribute of the pointer, an attribute of the input area, or a combination thereof.

This application claims the benefit of the Korean Patent ApplicationNos. 10-2008-0021895, filed on Mar. 10, 2008, and 10-2008-0021896 filedon Mar. 10, 2008, which are hereby incorporated by reference as if fullyset forth herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a terminal, specifically, to a terminaland method of controlling the vibration output from a terminal.

2. Discussion of the Related Art

A mobile terminal is a device which may be configured to perform variousfunctions. Examples of such functions include data and voicecommunications, capturing images and video via a camera, recordingaudio, playing music files and outputting music via a speaker system,and displaying images and video on a display. Some terminals includeadditional functionality which supports game playing, while otherterminals are also configured as multimedia players. More recently,mobile terminals have been configured to receive broadcast and multicastsignals which permit viewing of contents, such as videos and televisionprograms.

There are ongoing efforts to support and increase the functionality ofmobile terminals. Such efforts include software and hardwareimprovements, as well as changes and improvements in the structuralcomponents which form the mobile terminal.

Recently, terminals have been provided with touchscreens. There is ademand for facilitating a user to feel the shift of the pointer when thepointer is touched and dragged on the touchscreen during handwriting,drawing, and icon shifting on the touchscreen of the terminal.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a terminal and methodof controlling the same that substantially obviate one or more problemsdue to limitations and disadvantages of the related art.

An object of the present invention is to provide a terminal and methodof controlling the same, by which a user to feelingly recognize that thetouch shift of the pointer is correctly performed when a pointer istouched and dragged on a touchscreen for handwriting, drawing, iconshift and the like on the touchscreen of the terminal.

Additional advantages, objects, and features of the invention will beset forth in part in the description which follows and in part willbecome apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art uponexamination of the following or may be learned from practice of theinvention. The objectives and other advantages of the invention may berealized and attained by the structure particularly pointed out in thewritten description and claims hereof as well as the appended drawings.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a mobile terminal isprovided. The mobile terminal includes a touchscreen for receiving aninput, an output unit for outputting a vibration while a pointercontacts and moves along an input area of the touchscreen during awriting mode, and a control unit for controlling a characteristic of thevibration according to at least one of an attribute of the pointer, anattribute of the input area, or a combination thereof.

In one feature, the control unit controls the vibration characteristicaccording to a type of virtual material comprising the input area on thetouchscreen. Additionally, the control unit may control the vibrationcharacteristic according to a virtual type of writing instrumentrepresented by the pointer on the touchscreen. Furthermore,

In another feature, the type of virtual material comprising the inputarea is set as a background on the touchscreen. Additionally, the typeof writing instrument the pointer is virtually represented by is set asa cursor on the touchscreen.

In yet another feature, the control unit controls the vibrationcharacteristic according to a size of the pointer contact with the inputarea. Additionally, the control unit may control the vibrationcharacteristic according to a moving speed of the pointer along theinput area. Furthermore, the control unit may control the vibrationcharacteristic according to a virtual frictional force between the typeof virtual material comprising the input area and the virtual writinginstrument moving along the input area. Finally, the control unit maycontrol the vibration characteristic according to a contact pressure ofthe pointer on the input area.

In still yet another feature, the control unit outputs a sound when thepointer contacts and moves along the input area. Additionally, thecontrol unit controls the output unit to start outputting the vibrationwhen the pointer contacts the input area or the control unit may controlthe output unit to start outputting the vibration when the pointerbegins moving along the input area. Finally, the control unit maycontrol the output unit to end output of the vibration when the pointerno longer contacts the input area or the control unit may control theoutput unit to end output of the vibration when the pointer stops movingalong the input area.

In another embodiment, a method of vibrating a mobile terminal ispresented. The method includes outputting a vibration when a pointertouches and moves along an input area of a touchscreen, and controllinga characteristic of the vibration according to at least one of anattribute of the pointer, an attribute of the input area, or acombination thereof.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description andthe following detailed description of the present invention areexemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide furtherexplanation of the invention as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a furtherunderstanding of the invention and are incorporated in and constitute apart of this application, illustrate embodiment(s) of the invention andtogether with the description serve to explain the principle of theinvention. In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a mobile terminal in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective diagram of a front side of a mobile terminalaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective diagram of a backside of the mobile terminalshown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a wireless communication system accordingto the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a method of controlling a mobile terminalaccording to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a state diagram of a display screen on which a method ofcontrolling a mobile terminal according to a first embodiment of thepresent invention is implemented.

FIGS. 7 to 9 are diagrams for various patterns of vibration output by amethod of controlling a mobile terminal according to a first embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a method of controlling a mobile terminalaccording to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 11 to 13 are diagrams for various patterns of vibration outputtedby a method of controlling a mobile terminal according to a secondembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 14 is a flowchart of a method of controlling a mobile terminalaccording to a third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 15 is a state diagram of a display screen on which a method ofcontrolling a mobile terminal according to a third embodiment of thepresent invention is implemented;

FIG. 16 is a flowchart of a method of controlling a mobile terminalaccording to a fourth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 17 is a state diagram of a display screen on which a method ofcontrolling a mobile terminal according to a fourth embodiment of thepresent invention is implemented;

FIG. 18 is a flowchart of a method of controlling a mobile terminalaccording to a fifth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 19 is a state diagram of a display screen on which a method ofcontrolling a mobile terminal according to a fifth embodiment of thepresent invention is implemented;

FIGS. 20 to 22 are diagrams for various patterns of vibration outputtedby a method of controlling a mobile terminal according to a fifthembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 23 is a flowchart of a method of controlling a mobile terminalaccording to a sixth embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 24 and FIG. 25 are diagrams for various patterns of vibrationoutputted by a method of controlling a mobile terminal according to asixth embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Reference will now be made in detail to the preferred embodiments of thepresent invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be usedthroughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. It is to beunderstood by those of ordinary skill in this technological field thatother embodiments may be utilized, and structural, electrical, as wellas procedural changes may be made without departing from the scope ofthe present invention.

As used herein, the suffixes ‘module’, ‘unit’ and ‘part’ are used forelements in order to facilitate the disclosure only. So, significantmeanings or roles are not given to the suffixes themselves and it isunderstood that the ‘module’, ‘unit’ and ‘part’ can be used together orinterchangeably.

FIG. 1 Is a block diagram of a mobile terminal 100 in accordance with anembodiment of the present invention. The mobile terminal 100 may beimplemented as a variety of terminal types. Examples of such terminalsinclude mobile phones, user equipment, smart phones, computers, digitalbroadcast terminals, personal digital assistants, portable multimediaplayers (PMP), and navigators.

By way of non-limiting example only and for convenience and concisenessof the following description, the present invention is illustrated as amobile phone. It is not intended to limit the scope of the presentinvention. The teachings of the present invention apply equally to othertypes of terminals.

FIG. 1 shows the terminal 100 having various components, but it isunderstood that implementing all of the illustrated components is not arequirement. Greater or fewer components may alternatively beimplemented.

FIG. 1 shows a wireless communication unit 110 configured with variouscomponents. For example, the wireless communication unit 110 typicallyincludes one or more components which permit wireless communicationbetween the mobile terminal 100 and a wireless communication system ornetwork within which the mobile terminal is located. In case ofnon-mobile terminals, the wireless communication unit 110 may bereplaced with a wired communication unit. The wireless communicationunit 110 and wired communication unit may be commonly referred to as acommunication unit.

A broadcast receiving module 111 receives a broadcast signal andbroadcast associated information from an external broadcast managingentity via a broadcast channel. The broadcast channel may include asatellite channel or a terrestrial channel. The broadcast managingentity may be a system which transmits a broadcast signal or broadcastassociated information.

Examples of broadcast associated information include informationassociated with a broadcast channel, a broadcast program, or a broadcastservice provider. For example, broadcast associated information mayinclude an electronic program guide (EPG) of digital multimediabroadcasting (DMB) or electronic service guide (ESG) of digital videobroadcast-handheld (DVB-H).

The broadcast signal may be implemented as a TV broadcast signal, aradio broadcast signal, or a data broadcast signal. The broadcast signalmay further include a broadcast signal combined with a TV or radiobroadcast signal.

The broadcast receiving module 111 may receive broadcast signalstransmitted from various types of broadcast systems. By nonlimitingexample, such broadcasting systems include digital multimediabroadcasting-terrestrial (DMB-T), digital multimediabroadcasting-satellite (DMB-S), digital video broadcast-handheld(DVB-H), the data broadcasting system known as media forward link only(MediaFLO®), and integrated services digital broadcast-terrestrial(ISDB-T).

The broadcast receiving module may also receive multicast signals. Datareceived by the broadcast receiving module 111 may be stored in asuitable device, such as memory 160.

The mobile communication module 112 transmits and receives wirelesssignals to and from one or more network entities, such as a base stationor a Node-B. The wireless signals may represent audio, video,multimedia, control signaling, or data.

The wireless Internet module 113 provides Internet access for theterminal. The wireless Internet module 113 may be internally orexternally coupled to the terminal 100. Suitable technologies forwireless Internet may include, but are not limited to, WLAN (WirelessLAN)(Wi-Fi), Wibro (Wireless broadband), Wimax (World Interoperabilityfor Microwave Access), and HSDPA(High Speed Downlink Packet Access). Thewireless Internet module can be replaced with a wired Internet module innon-mobile terminals. The wireless Internet module 113 and wiredInternet module may be commonly referred to as an Internet module.

The short-range communication module 114 facilitates short-rangecommunications. Suitable technologies for implementing this moduleinclude radio frequency identification (RFID), infrared data association(IrDA), ultra-wideband (UWB), as well at the networking technologiescommonly referred to as Bluetooth™ and ZigBee™.

The position-location module 115 identifies and obtains the location ofthe terminal 100. The position-location module 115 may be implementedusing global positioning system (GPS) components which cooperate withassociated satellites and network components.

The audio/video (A/V) input unit 120 provides audio or video signalinput to the terminal 100. The A/V input unit 120 may include a camera121 and a microphone 122. The camera 121 receives and processes imageframes of still pictures or video.

The microphone 122 receives an external audio signal while the portabledevice is in a particular mode, such as a phone call mode, a recordingmode, or a voice recognition mode. The audio signal is processed andconverted into digital data. The terminal 100 and A/V input unit 120 mayinclude assorted noise removing algorithms to remove noise generated inthe course of receiving the external audio signal.

Data generated by the A/V input unit 120 may be stored in the memory160, utilized by the output unit 150, or transmitted via one or moremodules of communication unit 110. The terminal 100 may include two ormore microphones and cameras.

The user input unit 130 generates input data in response to usermanipulation of an associated input device or devices. Examples of suchdevices include a keypad, a dome switch, a touchpad, a jog wheel, and ajog switch.

The sensing unit 140 provides status measurements for various aspects ofthe terminal 100. For example, the sensing unit may detect an open andclosed state of the terminal 100, relative positioning of components ofthe terminal, a change of position of the terminal, a change of positionof a component of the terminal, a presence or absence of user contactwith the terminal, orientation of the terminal, or acceleration ordeceleration of the terminal. The sensing unit 140 may also sense thepresence or absence of power provided by the power supply 190 and thepresence or absence of a connection between the interface unit 170 andan external device.

The interface unit 170 may be implemented to connect the terminal withan external device. External devices include wired or wirelessheadphones, external chargers, power supplies, storage devicesconfigured to store data, or microphones. The interface unit 170 may beconfigured using a wired and wireless data port, audio input/output(I/O) ports, or video (I/O) ports. The interface unit 170 may alsoinclude a card socket for connecting various cards, such as a memorycard, a subscriber identity module (SIM) card, a user identity module(UIM) card, or a replaceable user identity module (RUIM) card.

The output unit 150 outputs information associated with the terminal100. The display 151 is typically implemented to display informationassociated with the terminal 100. For example, the display 151 mayprovide a graphical user interface which includes information associatedwith a phone call if the terminal is operating in a phone call mode. Thedisplay 151 may display images which are associated with various modes,such as a video call mode or a photographing mode.

The display 151 may be configured as a touch screen working incooperation with the input unit 130, in one embodiment of the presentinvention. This configuration allows the display 151 to function both asan output device and an input device.

The display 151 may be implemented using known display technologies suchas a liquid crystal display (LCD), a thin film transistor-liquid crystaldisplay (TFT-LCD), an organic light-emitting diode display (OLED), aflexible display, or a three-dimensional display. The terminal 100 mayinclude one or more of such displays. An example of a two-displayembodiment is one in which one display 151 is configured as an internaldisplay which is viewable when the terminal is in an opened position anda second display 151 configured as an external display which is viewablein both the open and closed positions.

The touchscreen may be configured to detect a touch input pressure inaddition to a touch input position and a touch input area.

FIG. 1 further shows the output unit 150 having an audio output module152. The audio output module 152 may be implemented using one or morespeakers, buzzers, or other audio producing devices.

The audio output module 152 functions in various modes including acall-receiving mode, a call-placing mode, a recording mode, a voicerecognition mode, or a broadcast reception mode. The audio output module152 outputs audio related to a particular function, such as a callnotification, a message notification, or an error notification.

The output unit 150 is further illustrated having an alarm module 153,which may be used to identify the occurrence of an event associated withthe mobile terminal 100. An example of such output includes providing avibration as a notification to a user.

The alarm module 153 may vibrate when the terminal 100 receives a callor message. Vibration may also be provided by the alarm module 153 inresponse to receiving user input at the terminal 100, thereby providinga tactile feedback mechanism. It is understood that the various outputsprovided by the components of output unit 150 may be performedseparately or performed using any combination of the components.

A memory 160 may store various types of data to support the processing,control, and storage requirements of the mobile terminal 100. Examplesof such data include program instructions for applications operating onthe mobile terminal 100, contact data, phonebook data, messages,pictures, and video.

Additionally, data for various patterns of vibration and sound output inresponse to a touch input on the touchscreen may be stored in the memory160. Details of the various patterns of vibration and sound will beexplained below.

The memory 160 may be implemented using any type of volatile andnon-volatile memory or storage devices. Such devices may include randomaccess memory (RAM), static random access memory (SRAM), electricallyerasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), erasable programmableread-only memory (EPROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM),read-only memory (ROM), magnetic memory, flash memory, magnetic oroptical disk, card-type memory, or other similar memory or data storagedevice.

The controller 180 controls the overall operations of the terminal. Forexample, the controller 180 performs the control and processingassociated with voice calls, data communications, video calls, cameraoperations, and recording operations.

Additionally, the controller 180 may perform a pattern recognizingprocess for recognizing a handwriting input or a picture drawing inputon the touchscreen as characters or images.

The controller may include a multimedia module 181 which providesmultimedia playback. The multimedia module 181 may be configured as partof the controller 180 or may be implemented as a separate component.

The power supply 190 provides power to the various components of theterminal 100. The power provided may be internal power or externalpower.

Various embodiments described herein may be implemented in acomputer-readable medium using computer software. The variousembodiments may also be implemented in hardware.

A hardware implementation may be implemented using one or moreapplication specific integrated circuits (ASICs), digital signalprocessors (DSPs), digital signal processing devices (DSPDs),programmable logic devices (PLDs), field programmable gate arrays(FPGAs), processors, controllers, micro-controllers, microprocessors, orother electronic units designed to perform the functions describedherein. Some embodiments are implemented by controller 180.

A software implementation of the embodiments described herein may beimplemented with separate software modules, such as procedures andfunctions, each of which perform one or more of the functions andoperations described herein. The software code may be implemented with asoftware application written in any suitable programming language andmay be stored in the memory 160 for execution by the controller 180 or aprocessor.

The mobile terminal 100 may be implemented in a variety of differentconfigurations. Examples of such configurations include folder-type,slide-type, bar-type, rotational-type, and swing-type.

For clarity, further disclosure will primarily relate to a slide-typemobile terminal 100. However such teachings apply equally to other typesof mobile terminals 100.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a front side of a mobile terminal 100according to an embodiment of the present invention. As illustrated inFIG. 2, the mobile terminal 100 is shown having a first body 200configured to slidably cooperate with a second body 205.

The user input unit 130 described in FIG. 1 may include a first inputunit such as function keys and four directional keys 210, a second inputunit such as keypad 215 and a third input unit such as side keys 245.The function keys 210 are associated with the first body 200, and thekeypad 215 is associated with the second body 205. The keypad mayinclude various keys such as numbers, characters, and symbols to enablea user to place a call, prepare a text or multimedia message, andotherwise operate the mobile terminal 100.

The first body 200 slides relative to the second body 205 between openand closed positions. Although not shown in drawings, in a folder-typemobile terminal, a first body thereof folds and unfolds relative to asecond body thereof between open and closed positions. In addition, in aswing-type mobile terminal, a first body thereof swings relative to asecond body thereof between open and closed positions.

The first body 200 is positioned over the second body 205 in the closedposition such that the keypad 215 is substantially or completelyobscured by the first body. The user may access the keypad 215, thedisplay 151, and function keys 210 in the open position. The functionkeys 210 may be configured for a user to enter commands such as ‘start’,‘stop’, or ‘scroll’.

The mobile terminal 100 is operable in either a standby mode or anactive call mode. Typically, the terminal 100 functions in the standbymode when in the closed position and in the active mode when in the openposition. The mode configuration may be changed as required or desiredby the user.

The first body 200 is formed from a first case 220 and a second case 225and the second body 205 is formed from a first case 230 and a secondcase 235. The respective first and second cases may be formed from asuitably rigid material, such as injection molded plastic, or formedusing metallic material, such as stainless steel (STS) and titanium(Ti).

One or more intermediate cases may be provided between the first case220 and second case 225 of the first body 200 or between the first case230 and second case 235 the second body 205. The first body 200 and thesecond body 205 may be sized to house electronic components necessary tosupport operation of the mobile terminal 100.

The first body 200 is illustrated having a camera 121 and audio outputmodule 152. The camera 121 may be selectively positioned such that thecamera may rotate or swivel relative to the first body 200.

The function keys 210 are positioned adjacent to a lower side of thedisplay 151. The display 151 is implemented as an LCD. The display 151may also be configured as a touchscreen having an underlying touchpadwhich generates signals responsive to user contact with the touchscreen.

The second body 205 is illustrated having a microphone 122 positionedadjacent to the keypad 215 and side keys 245 positioned along the side.The side keys 245 may be configured as hot keys, such that the side keysare associated with a particular function of the terminal 100.

An interface unit 170 is positioned adjacent to the side keys 245. Apower supply 190 in a form of a battery is located on a lower portion ofthe second body 205.

FIG. 3 is a rear view of the mobile terminal 100 shown in FIG. 2. Asillustrated in FIG. 3, the second body 205 includes a camera 123, aflash 250, and a mirror 255.

The flash 250 operates in conjunction with the camera 123. The mirror255 is useful for assisting a user to position the camera 123 in aself-portrait mode.

The camera 123 of the second body 205 faces a direction opposite to adirection faced by camera 121 of the first body 200. The camera 121 ofthe first body 200 and camera 123 of the second body 205 may have thesame or different capabilities.

In one embodiment, the camera 121 of the first body 200 operates with arelatively lower resolution than the camera 123 of the second body 205.Such an arrangement works well during a video conference in whichreverse link bandwidth capabilities may be limited. The relativelyhigher resolution of the camera 123 of the second body 205 is useful forobtaining higher quality pictures.

The second body 205 also includes an audio output module 153 configuredas a speaker which is located on an upper side of the second body. Theaudio output module 152 of the first body 200 and the audio outputmodule 153 of second body 205 may cooperate to provide stereo output.Moreover, either or both of the audio output modules 152 and 153 may beconfigured to operate as a speakerphone.

A broadcast signal receiving antenna 260 is illustrated located at anupper end of the second body 205. The antenna 260 functions incooperation with the broadcast receiving module 111. The antenna 260 maybe fixed or configured to retract into the second body 205.

The rear side of the first body 200 includes a slide module 265. Theslide module 265 slideably couples with a corresponding slide module(not illustrated) located on the front side of the second body 205.

It is understood that the illustrated arrangement of the variouscomponents of the first body 200 and the second body 205 may be modifiedas desired. Some or all of the components of one body may alternativelybe implemented on the other body. In addition, the location and relativepositioning of the components are not critical to many embodiments and,therefore, the components may be positioned at locations which differfrom those illustrated by the representative figures.

The mobile terminal 100 may operate in a communication system capable oftransmitting data via frames or packets. The communication system mayinclude wired communication, wireless communication, or asatellite-based communication system.

The communication system may utilize various systems such as frequencydivision multiple access (FDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA),code division multiple access (CDMA), universal mobiletelecommunications system (UMTS), long term evolution (LTE) of the UMTS,or the global system for mobile communications (GSM). By way ofnon-limiting example, further description will relate to a CDMAcommunication system, but such teachings apply equally to other systemtypes.

As illustrated in FIG. 4, a CDMA wireless communication system isillustrated having a plurality of terminals 100, a plurality of basestations (BS) 270, base station controllers (BSC) 275, and a mobileswitching center (MSC) 280. The MSC 280 is configured to interface witha conventional public switch telephone network (PSTN) 290 and is alsoconfigured to interface with the BSCs 275.

The BSCs 275 are coupled to the BSs 270 via backhaul lines. The backhaullines may be configured in accordance with any of several knowninterfaces including E1/T1, ATM, IP, PPP, Frame Relay, HDSL, ADSL, orxDSL. It is to be understood that the system may include more than twoBSCs 275.

Each BS 270 may include one or more sectors, each sector having anomnidirectional antenna or an antenna pointed in a particular directionradially away from the BS 270. Each sector may include two antennas fordiversity reception. Each BS 270 may be configured to support aplurality of frequency assignments, with each frequency assignmenthaving a particular spectrum.

The intersection of a sector and frequency assignment may be referred toas a CDMA channel. The BSs 270 may also be referred to as base stationtransceiver subsystems (BTSs). In an alternate embodiment, the term“base station” may be used to refer collectively to a BSC 275 and one ormore BSs 270.

The BSs 270 may also be denoted “cell sites.” Alternatively, individualsectors of a given BS 270 may be referred to as cell sites.

A broadcasting transmitter (BT) 295 is illustrated broadcasting tomobile terminals 100 operating within the system. The broadcastreceiving module 111 of the mobile terminal 100 is configured to receivebroadcast signals transmitted by the BT 295. Similar arrangements may beimplemented for other types of broadcast and multicast signaling.

FIG. 4 also shows several global positioning system (GPS) satellites300. The GPS satellites 300 facilitate locating the position of some orall of the terminals 100. The position-location module 115 of the mobileterminal 100 is typically configured to cooperate with the satellites300 to obtain position information.

Other types of position detection technology may be used in addition toor instead of GPS location technology. Some or all of the GPS satellites300 may alternatively or additionally be configured to provide satelliteDMB transmissions.

The BSs 270 receive sets of reverse-link signals from various terminals100 during operation of the wireless communication system. The terminals100 are performing calls, messaging, or other communications.

Each reverse-link signal received by a BS 270 is processed within thatBS. The resulting data is forwarded to an associated BSC 275. The BSC275 provides call resource allocation and mobility managementfunctionality including soft handoffs between base stations 270. TheBSCs 275 also route the received data to the MSC 280, which providesadditional routing services for interfacing with the PSTN 290.Similarly, the PSTN 290 interfaces with the MSC 280 and the MSCinterfaces with the BSC 275, which in turn control the BSs 270 totransmit sets of forward-link signals to the terminals 100.

In the following description, a control method applicable to theabove-configured mobile terminal 100 is explained with respect tovarious embodiments. It is understood that the following embodiments canbe implemented independently or through combinations thereof.

The following embodiments are more easily implemented if the displaymodule 151 includes a touchscreen. In the following description, adisplay screen of the touchscreen 151 will be indicated by a referencenumber 400.

A method of controlling a mobile terminal according to a firstembodiment of the present invention is explained with reference to FIG.5 and FIG. 6 as follows.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart of a method of controlling a mobile terminalaccording to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is astate diagram of a display screen on which a method of controlling amobile terminal according to a first embodiment of the present inventionis implemented.

As illustrated in FIG. 5, a user may touch an object on the touchscreen(S51). The object may then be dragged (S52) and the mobile terminal 100may output a vibration while the object is dragged (S53).

FIG. 6-1 illustrates an example of a phone number icon 410 displayed onthe touchscreen 400 of the mobile terminal 100.

Various menu icons 460 may be displayed on the touchscreen 400. The menuicons 460 may include a phone call icon 461, a message icon 463, and atrashcan icon 465. The mobile terminal 100 may configure a specific menufunction if a specific menu icon is dragged and placed on a phone numbericon.

If the phone number icon 410 is dragged to one of the menu icons 460, amenu associated with the respective menu icon is executed.

For example, if the phone number icon 410 is dragged to the phone callicon 461, a phone call menu is executed for the phone number associatedwith the phone number icon 410. If the phone number icon 410 is draggedon the message icon 463, a message sending menu is executed for thephone number associated with the phone number icon 410. If the phonenumber icon 410 is dragged on the trashcan icon 465, the phone numbericon 410 is deleted.

Executing a phone call menu by dragging the phone number icon 410 to thephone call icon 461 is explained in detail as follows.

As illustrated in FIG. 6-2, the phone number icon 410 on the touchscreen400 is touched with a pointer (S51). FIG. 6-3 illustrates the process ofdragging the phone number icon 410 to the phone call icon 461 (S52). Thealarm module 153 of the mobile terminal 100 outputs a vibration when thephone number icon 410 is dragged (S53).

The vibration output simulates a vibration felt by a user when an objectis dragged on a surface. The phone number icon 410 may correspond to theobject and a background image of the touchscreen 400 may correspond tothe surface.

The vibration may be output from the time when the phone number icon 410is touched or dragged. The output of a vibration may terminate when thepointer is released. Additionally, the output of the vibration mayterminate when the user has dragged the phone number icon 410 to adesired location but before releasing the pointer.

After the phone number icon 410 has been touched, the vibration may beoutput when the phone number icon 410 is dragged. However, the vibrationis not output if the drag is temporarily interrupted.

If the pointer is touched and dragged, the vibration may bedistinguished according to various patterns which include at least oneof an area of the icon, a pressure of the touch, or a speed of theshift. The vibration may be distinguished by at least one of a vibrationmagnitude or a vibration frequency. The distinguished vibration isexplained in detail with reference to FIGS. 7 to 9.

FIGS. 7 to 9 illustrate examples for various patterns of vibrationoutput according to at least one of a size of the icon, a pressure ofthe touch, or a speed of the drag.

The pattern of the vibration according to a size of the icon isexplained with reference to FIG. 7.

FIG. 7-1 illustrates an example of touching and dragging a first phonenumber icon 410 having a first size. FIG. 7-2 illustrates an example oftouching and dragging a phone number icon 412 having a second size.

As illustrated in FIGS. 7-1 and 7-2 the second size is greater than thefirst size. Therefore, the magnitude of the second vibration may begreater than the magnitude of the first vibration. The vibration may begenerated in proportion to a contact area of an object that is dragged.Additionally, the magnitude of the vibration may be greater than thesize of the contact area if the contact area is touched with a largeforce.

Moreover, as illustrated in FIGS. 7-1 and 7-2, the frequency of thesecond vibration may be lower than the frequency of the first vibration.A vibration with a low frequency may be generated in inverse proportionto the contact area of an object that is dragged. Still, even if acontact area is small, a considerably low vibration frequency may begenerated if the small contact area receives a sharp contact.

The pattern of the vibration associated with a touch pressure isexplained with reference to FIG. 8.

FIG. 8-1 illustrates an example where the phone number icon 410 istouched and dragged by a first touch pressure. FIG. 8-2 illustrates anexample where the phone number icon 410 is touched and dragged by asecond touch pressure which is greater than the first touch pressure.

As illustrated in FIGS. 8-1 and 8-2, the first touch pressure generatesa first vibration and the second touch pressure generates a secondvibration. Since the second touch pressure is greater than the firsttouch pressure, the magnitude of the second vibration is greater thanthat of the first vibration. Additionally, the frequency of the secondvibration may be less than the frequency of the first vibration.

The pattern of the vibration according to a drag speed of the phonenumber icon 410 is explained with reference to FIG. 9.

FIG. 9-1 illustrates an example of the phone number icon 410 touched anddragged at a first drag speed. FIG. 9-2 illustrates an example of thephone number icon 410 touched and dragged at a second drag speed.

As illustrated in FIGS. 9-1 and 9-2, the second drag speed is greaterthan the first drag speed. Additionally, the first drag speed generatesa first vibration and the second drag speed generates a secondvibration. Since the second drag speed is greater than the first dragspeed, the magnitude of the second vibration may be greater than themagnitude of the first vibration. Additionally, the frequency of thesecond vibration may be less than the frequency of the first vibration.

In the above description, a vibration is output when an icon is touchedand dragged on the touchscreen 400. The vibration allows a user to havesimilar feeling to the vibration that may be generated from dragging aprescribed object on a surface such as a table or a floor.

To enhance the user's experience, a sound may be output which is similarto the sound generated from dragging an object on a surface. The soundmay be output together or separate from the vibration. As mentionedabove with respect to the vibration, the magnitude and frequency of thesound may be adjusted according to at least one of the size of the icon,the pressure of the touch, or the drag speed.

The present embodiment is applicable to dragging all types of icons.Moreover, the present embodiment is further applicable to dragging awindow or other object displayed on the touchscreen.

A method of controlling a mobile terminal according to a secondembodiment of the present invention is explained with reference to FIGS.10 to 13.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart of a method of controlling a mobile terminalaccording to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIGS. 11 to13 are diagrams for various patterns of vibration output by a mobileterminal according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

A virtual material of an icon and a virtual material of a background maybe set via the mobile terminal 100 (S101). The icon is then touched anddragged (S102) and a vibration is output according to the virtualmaterial of the object or the virtual material of the background (S103).

For example, the virtual material of the icon may include one of abrick, a bead, or a board. The virtual material of the background mayinclude one of a car lane, an icy road, a paper, or a blackboard. Thevirtual materials and characteristic data, such as roughness, softness,intrinsic pattern, intrinsic sound, and magnetism, may be stored in thememory 160.

The process of setting the virtual material via the mobile terminal isapparent to those skilled in the art and will be omitted in thefollowing description for clarity.

FIG. 11-1 illustrates an example of a virtual material of a first icon413 as a brick and a virtual material of a first background 420 as aroad. FIG. 11-2 illustrates an example that a virtual material of asecond icon 414 as a bead and a virtual material of a second background420 as an icy road.

The virtual material of the first icon 413 and second icon 414 may havean icon shape. Furthermore, the virtual material of the first and secondbackgrounds 420 may be represented as a background image. The image maybe a still picture or a moving picture.

The first icon 413 and second icon 414 are touched and dragged by thesame pressure and at the same speed (S102) The output of vibration ineach of the cases is explained as follows.

A virtual friction force is generated when an icon is dragged on thetouchscreen. The virtual friction force is similar to the frictioncreated when dragging a real object of a real surface. For example,since the first icon 413 is a brick which is dragged over a road thefirst virtual frictional force between the first icon 143 and the firstbackground 420 may be greater than a second virtual frictional forcebetween the second icon 414 and the second background 420.

The first frictional force and second frictional force respectivelygenerate a first vibration and a second vibration. Since dragging abrick over a road generates more friction compared to dragging a beadover ice, the magnitude of a first vibration may be greater than thesecond vibration. Additionally, the frequency of the first vibration maybe less than the frequency of the second vibration.

The vibration may be generated by simulating a vibration generated frommutual friction between real materials.

As mentioned above, a sound may be output in order to enhance the user'sexperience. The sound may be similar to a sound generated from dragginga real object over a surface. The sound may be output together orseparate from the vibration.

The virtual type of the icon and the virtual material of the backgroundmay be associated with magnetic material. This will be explained indetail with reference to FIG. 12 as follows.

FIG. 12-1 illustrates an example of a first icon 415 with a virtualmagnetism of S (south) and a background 420 with a virtual magnetism ofN (north). FIG. 12-2 illustrates an example that of a second icon 416with a virtual magnetism of N and a background 420 with a virtualmagnetism of N.

The first icon 415 and second icon 416 have the same size and aretouched and dragged at the same pressure (S102). The vibration output isexplained as follows.

A virtual attractive force works between the first icon 415 and thebackground 420, FIG. 12-1, while virtual repulsive force works betweenthe second icon 416 and the background 420, FIG. 12-2. Therefore, sincethe first icon 415 is not repulsed from the background 420, a firstvirtual frictional force between the first icon 415 and the background420 will be greater than a second virtual frictional force between thesecond icon 416 and the background 420.

The magnitude of a first vibration associated with the first virtualfrictional force may be greater than that of a second vibrationassociated with the second virtual frictional force. The frequency ofthe first vibration may be less than the frequency of the secondvibration.

FIG. 12-3 illustrates an example of both of the first icon 415 with avirtual magnetism of S, the second icon 416 with a virtual magnetism ofN, and the background 420 with a virtual magnetism of N.

If the second icon 416 is touched and dragged a virtual attractive forcewill be present between the first icon 415 and the second icon 416,whereas a virtual repulsive force will be present between the secondicon 416 and the background 420. Therefore, a third virtual frictionalforce between the second icon 416 and the background 420 has anintermediate value which is less than the first virtual frictional forceand greater than the second virtual frictional force.

The magnitude of a third vibration associated with the third virtualfrictional force may have an intermediate value which is less than themagnitude of the first vibration and greater than the magnitude of thesecond vibration. Additionally, a frequency of the third vibration mayhave an intermediate value which is less than the frequency of the firstvibration and greater than the frequency of the second vibration.

As discussed above, the virtual material of the background may includevarious surfaces. In one example, the surface of the virtual material ofthe background may include a water surface. This is explained in detailwith reference to FIG. 13 as follows.

FIG. 13-1 illustrates an example of the virtual material of a first icon417 as a brick and a virtual material of the background 420 as water.FIG. 13-2 illustrates an example wherein the virtual material of asecond icon 418 as a wood piece that may float and a virtual material ofa background 420 as water.

The first icon 415 and second icon 416 have the same size and aretouched and dragged under the same pressure and with the same speed. Theoutput of vibration is explained as follows.

A virtual buoyancy does not exist between the first icon 417 and thebackground 420 since the virtual material of the first icon 417 isbrick. Bricks are not buoyant and would not float in water. However, avirtual buoyancy exists between the second icon 418 and the background420 because the virtual material of the second icon 418 is wood and awood piece may float in water. As such, a virtual frictional forcebetween the first icon 417 and the background 420 may be greater than asecond virtual frictional force between the second icon 418 and thebackground 420.

The magnitude of a first vibration associated with the first virtualfrictional force may be greater than the magnitude of a second vibrationassociated with the second virtual frictional force. Additionally, afrequency of the first vibration may be less than the frequency of thesecond vibration.

A method of controlling a mobile terminal according to a thirdembodiment of the present invention is explained with reference to FIG.14 and FIG. 15 as follows.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart of a method of controlling a mobile terminalaccording to a third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 15 is astate diagram of a display screen on which a method of controlling amobile terminal according to a third embodiment of the present inventionis implemented.

A virtual material of an icon and a virtual material of a background ofthe icon may be set via the mobile terminal 100 (S141). The icon maythen be touched and dragged (S142) and drag speed of the icon isadjusted according to the virtual material of the icon and the virtualmaterial of the background (S143).

The virtual materials of the icon and the background are explained inthe previous embodiment and their details will be omitted in thefollowing description.

FIGS. 15-1 and 15-2 illustrate an example of a virtual material of afirst icon 413 as a brick and a virtual material of a first background420 as a street. FIGS. 15-3 and 15-4 illustrate an example of a virtualmaterial of a second icon 414 as a bead and a virtual material of asecond background 420 as ice.

The first icon 413 and second icon 414 are touched and dragged by thesame pressure and at the same speed. The drag speed of the first andsecond icons is explained as follows.

A first virtual frictional force between the first icon 413 and thefirst background 420 may be relatively high because a brick moving overa road would create high amounts of friction. Therefore, if the firsticon 413 is dragged at a first speed, the first icon 413 is shifted at asecond speed which is less than the first speed. In particular, a dragspeed of the first icon is less than a speed of a pointer that may dragthe first icon 413 (S143).

Alternatively, a second virtual frictional force between the second icon414 and the second background 420 may be relatively low because a beadmoving over ice creates a low amount of friction. Therefore, if thesecond icon 414 is dragged at a first speed, the second icon 414 isshifted at a speed which is relatively equal to the first speed (S143).

The differentiated drag speed of the icon may be implemented with atleast one of a vibration and a sound discussed in the previousembodiments.

In the description above the drag speed of the icon is adjustedaccording to the virtual frictional force between the icon and thebackground. Alternatively, the present embodiment may be configured suchthat the drag speed of the icon is adjusted according to the virtualmagnetism or buoyancy relation between the icon and the background. Thisis apparent to those skilled in the art and its details will be omittedin the following description for clarity of this disclosure.

A method of controlling a mobile terminal according to a fourthembodiment of the present invention is explained with reference to FIG.16 and FIG. 17 as follows.

FIG. 16 is a flowchart of a method of controlling a mobile terminalaccording to a fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 17 is astate diagram of a display screen on which a method of controlling amobile terminal according to a fourth embodiment of the presentinvention is implemented.

A virtual volume of an icon may be set via the mobile terminal 100(S161). The icon may then be touched and dragged such that the iconpasses through a second icon (S162) and a vibration may be output whichis proportional to the virtual volume of the icon which was passedthrough a second icon (S163).

FIG. 17-1 illustrates a first icon 410 and a second icon 412 displayedon the touchscreen 400. A virtual volume may be set for the first icon410 and the second icon 412. For example, the first icon 410 may have afirst volume and the second icon 412 may have a second volume which isgreater than the first volume.

As illustrated in FIG. 17-2, the first icon 410 may be touched anddragged to pass through the second icon 412. A vibration with a firstmagnitude may be output while the first icon 410 passes through thesecond icon 412. The first magnitude may be proportional to the secondvolume of the second icon 412.

As illustrated in FIG. 17-3, the second icon 412 may be touched anddragged to pass through the first icon 410. A vibration with a secondmagnitude may be output while the second icon 412 passes through thefirst icon 410. The second magnitude may be proportional to the firstvolume of the first icon 410.

A method of controlling a mobile terminal according to a fifthembodiment of the present invention is explained with reference to FIG.18 and FIG. 19 as follows.

FIG. 18 is a flowchart of a method of controlling a mobile terminalaccording to a fifth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 19 is astate diagram of a display screen on which a method of controlling amobile terminal according to a fifth embodiment of the present inventionis implemented.

The touchscreen may be touched with a pointer (S181). The pointer maythen be shifted on the touchscreen (S182) and a vibration may be outputduring the shifting of the pointer (S183).

As illustrated in FIG. 19-1, the mobile terminal 100 may enter a messagemode. Entering a message mode in a mobile terminal is apparent to thoseskilled in the art and its details will be omitted in the followingdescription for clarity of this disclosure. The present and followingembodiments are applicable to a drawing mode and a mode for inputtingcharacters.

A handwriting input area 410 and a text display area 460 are displayedon the touchscreen 400. The text display area 460 displays text of apattern recognized from the handwriting input to the handwriting inputarea 410.

A process for inputting a character ‘C’ to the handwriting input area410 is explained as follows.

As illustrated in FIG. 19-2, a pointer is touched to the handwritinginput area 410 (S181). The pointer may include a stylus pen or a user'sfinger.

As illustrated FIG. 19-3, the pointer is dragged in a pattern of thecharacter ‘C’ (S182). The character ‘C’ corresponding to the motion ofthe dragging of the pointer, is displayed on the text display area 460.When the pointer is dragged, the alarm module 153 of the mobile terminal100 outputs a vibration as illustrated in FIG. 19-3 (S183).

The vibration simulates the vibration that may be felt when a userperforms handwriting on a surface such as a paper, a blackboard, or awall. Specifically, the pointer may correspond to the writing instrumentand the handwriting input area 410 may correspond to the handwritingsurface.

The vibration may be output from a time when the pointer is touched or atime when the pointer is dragged after being touched. The vibration maycontinue until a time when the pointer is released or when the pointerstops being dragged before the pointer is released.

When the pointer is touched and dragged, the vibration may be output invarious patterns. The various patterns may be determined according to atleast one of an area of the touch, a pressure of the touch and a speedof the shift. The vibration patterns may include at least one of adifference in a magnitude of the vibration or a frequency of thevibration. This is explained in detail with reference to FIGS. 20 to 22as follows.

FIGS. 20 to 22 are diagrams for various patterns of vibration output bya mobile terminal according to a fifth embodiment of the presentinvention. FIGS. 20 to 22 illustrate different graph patterns ofvibration output according to at least one of the area of the touch, thepressure of the touch, and the drag speed.

Vibration patterns associated with touch areas are explained withreference to FIG. 20.

FIG. 20-1 illustrates an example of the pointer touching the input area460. The pointer is touched and dragged with a first touch area. FIG.20-2 illustrates an example of the pointer touching the input area 460.The pointer is touched and dragged with a second touch area that islarger than the first touch area.

The first touch area and second touch area are respectively associatedwith a first vibration and a second vibration. The magnitude of thesecond vibration may be greater than the magnitude of the firstvibration. The magnitude of the vibration may be similar to thevibration that is generated in proportion to a contact area of a writinginstrument to a surface. Still, a small contact area may be associatedwith a greater magnitude vibration because a greater vibration may begenerated if a small contact area is touched by a sharp tip of a writinginstrument.

Additionally, as illustrated in FIGS. 20-1 and 20-2, a frequency of thesecond vibration may be lower than the frequency of the first vibration.A frequency of vibration may be an inverse proportion to a contact areaof a writing instrument. Still, a small contact area may be associatedwith a low frequency vibration because a lower frequency vibration maybe generated if a small contact area is touched by a sharp tip of awriting instrument.

Vibration patterns associated to the touch pressure of the pointer areexplained FIG. 21 as follows.

FIG. 21-1 illustrates an example wherein the pointer is touched anddragged on the touch input area 460 with a first touch pressure. FIG.21-2 illustrates an example wherein the pointer is touched and draggedon the touch input area 460 with a second touch pressure. The secondtouch pressure illustrated in FIG. 21-2 is greater than the first touchpressure illustrated in FIG. 21-1.

The first touch area and second touch area are respectively associatedwith a first vibration and a second vibration. The magnitude of thesecond vibration may be greater than the magnitude of the firstvibration. Additionally, a frequency of the second vibration may be lessthan the frequency of the first vibration. A strong touch pressure isassociated with a wider touch area and a low touch pressure isassociated with a narrow touch area.

Finally, vibration patterns associated with the touch drag speed of thepointer are explained with reference to FIG. 22.

FIG. 22-1 illustrates an example of a pointer touched and dragged on thetouch input area 460 at a first drag speed. FIG. 22-2 illustrates anexample of the pointer touched and dragged on the touch input area 460at a second drag shift speed. The second drag speed is greater than thefirst drag speed.

The first drag speed and second drag speed are respectively associatedwith a first vibration and a second vibration. The magnitude of thesecond vibration may be less than the magnitude of the first vibration.Additionally, a frequency of the second vibration may be greater thanthe frequency of the first vibration.

In the above description, the vibration is output to enable a user tofeel vibrations similar to vibrations generated when performinghandwriting on a paper, a blackboard, a wall, or other surface.

Additionally, the present embodiment may output a sound, which issimilar to the sound generated from performing writing on surface with areal writing instrument. The sound may be output together or separatefrom the vibration. As mentioned in the foregoing description, themagnitude and frequency components of the sound may be adjustedaccording to at least one of the area of the touch, the pressure of thetouch, or the drag speed.

A method of controlling a mobile terminal according to a sixthembodiment of the present invention is explained with reference to FIGS.23 to 25 as follows.

FIG. 23 is a flowchart of a method of controlling a mobile terminalaccording to a sixth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 24 andFIG. 25 are diagrams for various patterns of vibration outputted by amethod of controlling a mobile terminal according to a sixth embodimentof the present invention.

The mobile terminal 100 may be preset by the manufacturer for a virtualtype of the pointer and a virtual material of the writing background(S231). Additionally, a user may set a virtual type of the pointer and avirtual material of the writing background (S231). The pointer istouched and dragged on the writing background (S232) and a vibration maybe output according to the virtual type of the pointer or the virtualmaterial of the writing background (S233)

The virtual type of the pointer may include one of a ballpoint pen, apencil, a chalk, a crayon, or a writing brush. The virtual material ofthe writing background may include one of a paper, a blackboard, a brickwall, a tree. The virtual types of the pointer, the virtual materials ofthe writing background, and characteristic data, such as roughness,softness, intrinsic pattern, intrinsic sound, may be stored in thememory 160.

FIG. 24-1 illustrates an example of a virtual type of the pointer aschalk and a virtual material of the handwriting input area 410 as abrick wall. FIG. 24-2 illustrates an example of a virtual type of thepointer as a pencil and a virtual material of the handwriting input area410 as a paper.

As illustrated FIG. 24, the shape of the virtual type of the pointer maybe represented as a cursor and the virtual material of the handwritinginput area 410 may be represented as a background image of the touchinput area.

The first pointer 461 and second pointer 462 may be touched and draggedon the handwriting input area 410 with the same pressure and at the samespeed, yet the vibration may be different for each pointer. Thevibration output is explained as follows.

A first virtual frictional force between the chalk and the brick wall,FIG. 24-1, may be greater than a second virtual frictional force betweenthe pencil and the paper, FIG. 24-2.

Therefore, the magnitude of a first vibration associated with the firstvirtual frictional force may be greater than the magnitude of a secondvibration associated with the second virtual frictional force.Additionally, a frequency of the first vibration may be less than thefrequency of the second vibration.

The vibration between the virtual type of the pointer and the virtualmaterial of the writing background may be configured to simulate thevibration generated from friction between a real writing object andwriting surface.

As mentioned in the foregoing description, a sound may be output whichis similar to a sound generated from writing on a real writingbackground with a real writing instrument. The sound may be outputtogether or separate from the vibration.

The vibration may be configured to be output in accordance with theintrinsic pattern of the virtual material of the handwriting input area.This is explained in detail with reference to FIG. 25 as follows.

FIG. 25 illustrates an example of a virtual material of the handwritinginput as a brick wall. If the pointer is touched and dragged on thebrick wall, the vibration will be output according to the intrinsicproperties of a brick wall. For example, if the pointer is dragged to aninter-brick groove, then a vibration may be different than the vibrationoutput when the pointer is dragged on a brick. Therefore, a user maysense the inter-brick groove via a difference in the vibration output.

The present invention provides the following effects or advantages.First, according to embodiments of the present invention, a vibration isgenerated when an object is touched and dragged on a touchscreen of aterminal, whereby a user may recognize that the object is accurately andcorrectly dragged.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the presentinvention can be specified into other forms without departing from thespirit or scope of the inventions.

The terminal vibration methods according to the present invention may beimplemented with computer-readable codes on a medium having a programrecorded thereon. The computer-readable recording media include allkinds of storage devices for storing data that can be read by computersystems, such as ROM, RAM, CD-ROM, magnetic tapes, floppy discs, andoptical data storage devices as well as a device implemented withcarrier waves, such as transmission via the Internet. The computer mayinclude the controller 180 of the terminal 100.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodifications and variations can be made in the present inventionwithout departing from the spirit or scope of the inventions. Thus, itis intended that the present invention covers the modifications andvariations of this invention provided they come within the scope of theappended claims and their equivalents.

1. A mobile terminal, comprising: a touchscreen for receiving an input;an output unit for outputting a vibration while a pointer contacts andmoves along an input area of the touchscreen during a writing mode; anda control unit for controlling a characteristic of the vibrationaccording to at least one of an attribute of the pointer, an attributeof the input area, or a combination thereof.
 2. The mobile terminal ofclaim 1, wherein the control unit controls the vibration characteristicaccording to a type of virtual material comprising the input area on thetouchscreen.
 3. The mobile terminal of claim 2, wherein the control unitcontrols the vibration characteristic according to a virtual type ofwriting instrument represented by the pointer on the touchscreen.
 4. Themobile terminal of claim 2, wherein the type of virtual materialcomprising the input area is set as a background on the touchscreen. 5.The mobile terminal of claim 3, wherein the type of writing instrumentthe pointer is virtually represented by is set as a cursor on thetouchscreen.
 6. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the control unitcontrols the vibration characteristic according to a size of the pointercontact with the input area.
 7. The mobile terminal of claim 1, whereinthe control unit controls the vibration characteristic according to amoving speed of the pointer along the input area.
 8. The mobile terminalof claim 3, wherein the control unit controls the vibrationcharacteristic according to a virtual frictional force between the typeof virtual material comprising the input area and the virtual writinginstrument moving along the input area.
 9. The mobile terminal of claim1, wherein the control unit controls the vibration characteristicaccording to a contact pressure of the pointer on the input area. 10.The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the control unit outputs a soundwhen the pointer contacts and moves along the input area.
 11. The mobileterminal of claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the output unitto start outputting the vibration when the pointer contacts the inputarea.
 12. The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the control unitcontrols the output unit to start outputting the vibration when thepointer begins moving along the input area.
 13. The mobile terminal ofclaim 1, wherein the control unit controls the output unit to end outputof the vibration when the pointer no longer contacts the input area. 14.The mobile terminal of claim 1, wherein the control unit controls theoutput unit to end output of the vibration when the pointer stops movingalong the input area.
 15. A method of vibrating a mobile terminal,comprising: outputting a vibration when a pointer touches and movesalong an input area of a touchscreen; and controlling a characteristicof the vibration according to at least one of an attribute of thepointer, an attribute of the input area, or a combination thereof. 16.The method of claim 15, further comprising controlling thecharacteristic of the vibration according to a type of virtual materialcomprising the input area on the touchscreen.
 17. The method of claim16, further comprising controlling the characteristic of the vibrationaccording to a virtual type of writing instrument represented by thepointer on the touchscreen.
 18. The method of claim 16, furthercomprising setting the type of virtual material comprising the inputarea as a background on the touchscreen.
 19. The method of claim 17,further comprising virtually representing the type of writing instrumentrepresented by the pointer as a cursor on the touchscreen.
 20. Themethod of claim 15, further comprising controlling the vibrationcharacteristic according to a size of the pointer contact with the inputarea.
 21. The method of claim 15, further comprising controlling thevibration characteristic according to a moving speed of the pointeralong the input area.
 22. The method of claim 17, further comprisingcontrolling the vibration characteristic according to a virtualfrictional force between the type of virtual material comprising theinput area and the virtual writing instrument moving along the inputarea.
 23. The method of claim 15, further comprising controlling thevibration characteristic according to a contact pressure of the pointeron the input area.
 24. The method of claim 15, further comprisingoutputting a sound when the pointer contacts and moves along the inputarea.
 25. The method of claim 15, wherein outputting the vibrationfurther comprises starting the vibration output when the pointercontacts the input area.
 26. The method of claim 15 wherein outputtingthe vibration further comprises starting the vibration output when thepointer begins moving along the input area.
 27. The method of claim 15,wherein outputting the vibration further comprises ending the vibrationoutput when the pointer no longer contacts the input area.
 28. Themethod of claim 15, wherein outputting the vibration further comprisesending the vibration output when the pointer stops moving along theinput area.